Earlier this year, I sent to the Congress my agenda to rally America's armies of compassion to address many of our toughest community challenges.

Government does not have a monopoly on compassion. And while government cannot be replaced by charities, it should welcome them as partners, not view them as rivals.

Today, on a bipartisan basis, members of the House and Senate took important first steps to advance this agenda to aid churches, synagogues, mosques, and communities in helping neighbors in need.

I welcome the bipartisan proposals that have been offered in the House by Rep. J.C. Watts, Rep. Tony Hall, and Speaker Dennis Hastert, and in the Senate by Senator Rick Santorum and Senator Joseph Lieberman.

These new legislative initiatives demonstrate that momentum continues to build behind my agenda to rally America's armies of compassion. They represent a bipartisan consensus that government must support our quiet heroes who are lifting lives and healing neighborhoods one heart and one act of kindness at a time.

I will continue to work in a bipartisan fashion with Congress to help those most in need by encouraging charitable giving and eliminating barriers to charitable works.